Analgesic Efficacy of Aloe Vera and Green Tea Mouthwash After Periodontal Pocket Reduction Surgery: A Randomized Split-Mouth Clinical Trial

Objectives: The aim of this study was to assess the efficacy of aloe vera and green tea mouthwash for reducing pain after periodontal pocket reduction surgery.Methods: This randomized, split-mouth, double-blind, cross-over clinical trial was carried out on 45 patients between 25 and 50 years of age requiring pocket reduction surgery. Patients underwent bilateral surgeries in two sessions. After the first surgery, the patients were randomized to receive either mouthwash or placebo for 10 days; then, each group used the other product for the same time period. The parameters assessed following each procedure were the numeric pain rating scale (NPRS) and number of painkillers taken by patients to alleviate postoperative pain. Also, patients were requested to report side effects, if any, after using the mouthwash.Results: The reported postoperative pain score was significantly lower after using the aloe vera and green tea mouthwash compared to the placebo only in the first postoperative day (P=0.002). Furthermore, number of analgesic tablets used in the first postoperative day was significantly lower than that in the control group (P=0.007).Conclusion: Our results indicated that patients experienced significantly less early postoperative pain when they used aloe vera and green tea mouthwash. Thus, its application can be recommended to decrease pain after periodontal pocket reduction surgery

Tobacco tax and price in the developed and developing countries in the World

An ecologic study was conducted on 177 countries which the information of tobacco tax and price and also Human Development Index (HDI) was available in 2014. In this study, the relationship between HDI and four reported indexes by World Health Organization (WHO) was studied. These four indexes included: Tobacco affordability, Taxes as a percent of price of the most sold brand (total tax), Price of a 20 cigarette pack of the most sold brand international dollars at purchasing power parity (Price_ppp) and Price of a 20 cigarette pack of the most sold brand in US$at official exchange rates (Price_US$). The data of HDI and tobacco were mined from WHO and United Nations Development Programme sites respectively. To study the correlation between HDI and the variables of this study, Pearson correlation coefficient was used and also Linear Regression Analysis was used to study the relationship between HDI and the variables of the study. According to the findings of the linear regression analysis, there was a significant relationship between HDI and total tax (B = 0.81, CI 95%: 0.63-0.99) and tobacco affordability (B = -0.35, CI 95%: -0.42 _ -0.28). There was also a significant relationship between HDI whit price-ppp (B = 9.44, CI 95%: 7.13-11.75) and price -US$;(B = 11.97, CI 95%: 9.71-14.23). According to the findings of this study, less developed countries devote less tax on tobacco. Due to the rising trend of the prevalence and also development of non-communicable diseases such as lung cancer in developing countries, policy makers of these countries are required to design stricter policies toward tobacco production and supply as well. (C) 2018 Published by Elsevier Inc

Bi-level pricing and inventory strategies for perishable products in a competitive supply chain

This paper aims to develop a new bi-level game model for joint pricing and inventory decisions in a competitive supply chain consisting of a dominant manufacturer, who produces single perishable product from deteriorating raw materials, and two follower retailers who face nonlinear price-dependent demand and operate under Cournot assumptions. Three levels of warehousing including raw material warehouse, final product warehouse, and retail warehouses with exponential deterioration rates are considered to explore the joint impact of deterioration rate and price elasticity on the equilibrium inventory decisions. A Stackelberg–Nash–Cournot model is developed to seek the equilibrium prices, quantities, and replenishment cycles and is solved through an exact methodology. A numerical example is presented to validate the proposed model and comprehensive sensitivity analyses are carried out to measure the impact of the model’s key parameters including the deterioration rate in the producer’s and the retailers’ warehouses, the retail and competitor price elasticity, and the market scale on the equilibrium

Tobacco tax and price in the developed and developing countries in the World

An ecologic study was conducted on 177 countries which the information of tobacco tax and price and also Human Development Index (HDI) was available in 2014. In this study, the relationship between HDI and four reported indexes by World Health Organization (WHO) was studied. These four indexes included: Tobacco affordability, Taxes as a percent of price of the most sold brand (total tax), Price of a 20 cigarette pack of the most sold brand international dollars at purchasing power parity (Price_ppp) and Price of a 20 cigarette pack of the most sold brand in US$at official exchange rates (Price_US$). The data of HDI and tobacco were mined from WHO and United Nations Development Programme sites respectively. To study the correlation between HDI and the variables of this study, Pearson correlation coefficient was used and also Linear Regression Analysis was used to study the relationship between HDI and the variables of the study. According to the findings of the linear regression analysis, there was a significant relationship between HDI and total tax (B = 0.81, CI 95%: 0.63–0.99) and tobacco affordability (B = --0.35, CI 95%: --0.42 _ --0.28). There was also a significant relationship between HDI whit price-ppp (B = 9.44, CI 95%: 7.13–11.75) and price-US$ ;(B = 11.97, CI 95%: 9.71–14.23). According to the findings of this study, less developed countries devote less tax on tobacco. Due to the rising trend of the prevalence and also development of non-communicable diseases such as lung cancer in developing countries, policy makers of these countries are required to design stricter policies toward tobacco production and supply as well. Keywords: Tobacco, Tobacco affordability, Tobacco tax, Human Development Inde

Comparative evaluation of Green Tea- Aloe Vera mouthwash and chlorhexidine 0.2% on gingival indices (A randomized clinical trial)

Introduction: Nowadays in the field of dentistry, there is a trend to encourage the use of herbal and natural products. The high level of clinical research in terms of considering green tea and aloe vera, with various functionality for individual use is a typical example. The purpose of this randomized, controlled, and double-blind study was to evaluate comparative evaluation of green tea-aloe vera mouthwash and chlorhexidine 0.2% on gingival indices. Methods: A total of 60 patients (26 women and 34 men) with periodontal disease were randomly allocated into one of the three double blind groups, 20 in each, to receive the following treatments :(1) 0.2% chlorhexidine, (2) green tea-aloe vera and  (3) distilled water. Plaque and gingival indices were evaluated on the day of the beginning of the experiment and 14 days postoperative. Subjects were asked to rinse their mouth with the mouth rinse, twice a day, during a 14-day period. Paired t-test was used to test the mean difference on 0 and 14 days, respectively. One way analysis of variance (ANOVA) was used to compare the mean difference between the groups while Tukey test was used for multiple comparisons. Results: Chlorhexidine 0.2%, green tea - aloe vera and placebo reduced the plaque index by 0.17±0.14, 0.10±0/08 and 0.02±0.18, respectively, with a statistical significance of p=0.008. This difference was related to Chlorhexidine 0.2% and green tea - aloe vera with Placebo. There exist a significant difference of p=0.001 in the bleeding index  between the three groups, and this difference was related to Chlorhexidine 0.2% and green tea - aloe vera with placebo. Conclusion: Green tea –aloe vera   mouthwash improves periodontal health status. Therefore, it can be used to improve oral and dental health status

Comparative evaluation of Green Tea- Aloe Vera mouthwash and chlorhexidine 0.2% on gingival indices (A randomized clinical trial)

Introduction: Nowadays in the field of dentistry, there is a trend to encourage the use of herbal and natural products. The high level of clinical research in terms of considering green tea and aloe vera, with various functionality for individual use is a typical example. The purpose of this randomized, controlled, and double-blind study was to evaluate comparative evaluation of green tea-aloe vera mouthwash and chlorhexidine 0.2% on gingival indices. Methods: A total of 60 patients (26 women and 34 men) with periodontal disease were randomly allocated into one of the three double blind groups, 20 in each, to receive the following treatments :(1) 0.2% chlorhexidine, (2) green tea-aloe vera and  (3) distilled water. Plaque and gingival indices were evaluated on the day of the beginning of the experiment and 14 days postoperative. Subjects were asked to rinse their mouth with the mouth rinse, twice a day, during a 14-day period. Paired t-test was used to test the mean difference on 0 and 14 days, respectively. One way analysis of variance (ANOVA) was used to compare the mean difference between the groups while Tukey test was used for multiple comparisons. Results: Chlorhexidine 0.2%, green tea - aloe vera and placebo reduced the plaque index by 0.17±0.14, 0.10±0/08 and 0.02±0.18, respectively, with a statistical significance of p=0.008. This difference was related to Chlorhexidine 0.2% and green tea - aloe vera with Placebo. There exist a significant difference of p=0.001 in the bleeding index  between the three groups, and this difference was related to Chlorhexidine 0.2% and green tea - aloe vera with placebo. Conclusion: Green tea –aloe vera   mouthwash improves periodontal health status. Therefore, it can be used to improve oral and dental health status

Preliminary Phytochemical and Biological Screening of Cyclamen coum a Member of Palestinian Flora

Background: Since ancient times, the treatment of various diseases has relied on medicinal plants. The replacement of chemically synthesized drugs with natural medications gave the later advantageous due to their safety for humans. This study aimed to screen and to evaluate preliminarily phytoconstituents, total contents of flavonoids, tannins, and phenols also to evaluate the antibacterial and antioxidant activities of Cyclamen coum aerial parts methanol extract. Methods: Screening of phytoconstituents, total flavonoids, tannins and phenols contents, as well as antioxidant properties, were investigated for the Cyclamen coum aerial parts by using standard phytochemical and analytical methods. Evaluation of antibacterial activity of the plant methanolic extract was performed by using broth microdilution method. American Type Culture Collections of Escherichia coli, Pseudomonas aeruginosa, Staphylococcus aureus and Methicillin-Resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) were utilized to evaluate antibacterial activity. Results: Preliminary phytochemical qualitative analysis of the plant methanolic extract showed that the plant aerial parts contained amino acids, reducing sugar, carbohydrate, tannin, flavonoid, phenol, saponin, cardiac glycoside, and steroids. Total flavonoids, phenols, and tannins in plant methanolic extract were 60.88 mg QUE/g, 32.7 mg GAE/g and 11.7 mg CAE/g, respectively. Meanwhile, the antioxidant activity was estimated to be 31 µg/mL and has very weak antibacterial activity on the studied pathogens. Conclusion: In the present study, evaluation of total phenolic, tannins and flavonoid content from the aerial parts of C. coum can be an antioxidant naturally potent source. The results of in-vitro antibacterial studies showed that the studied plant has very weak antibacterial activity. In addition, the presence of antioxidant compounds in C. coum makes it a good candidate for manufacturing dietary supplements and food preservative